Re: Trying to find the perfect food for Lilly

Originally Posted by cowsmom

canned pumpkin. not pie filling but real canned pumpkin. also very hard stools would mean she needs more water in her diet. so try the pumpkin and if she gets better then stop the pumpkin and if they get hard again then get more water in her diet. prolly will straighten out in a few days with the pumpkin.

Alright cool, I'll give that a go.

I wonder because it was hot here yesterday if maybe she got a little dehydrated. Could I just put water in her food to get more water in her too?

Re: Trying to find the perfect food for Lilly

I wonder because it was hot here yesterday if maybe she got a little dehydrated. Could I just put water in her food to get more water in her too?

lots of people add some water to it before feeding. there is a debate about citric acid in food and bloat but i cant find anything to support it so i dont know. her is one article about it and it was in the bloat article posted on gunnyboys threat about gunnys passing. so ill let you decide whether to or not. you can just give ice cubes or veggies that have lots of water content. up to you. Q: I am concerned about the citric acid issue in dog kibble. I know it is a more natural preservative but I am not sure how true some of the info is about it causing bloat or any other problems Thank You.A: Thanks for your question.Unfortunately there is not an easy answer. Based on the current research information available, it is impossible to claim that citric acid in dog kibble is a risk factor for causing bloat. Gastric dilation / volvulus (bloat) is a complex disease with many causes / risk factors.Some of the best bloat research done has been done by a veterinary team from Purdue University. Their recent research that implicated citric acid as a possible risk factor for bloat was not concrete. The diets that were associated with increased risk of bloat were those that contained citric acid and were PRE-MOISTENED by owners before they were fed to their dogs. Whether the citric acid or the pre-moistening of the food was responsible was not studied. It has long been suspected that wetting the food is an increased risk factor for bloat. *note: no study was done with diets containing citric acid that were NOT pre-moistened to determine the real risk factor of citric acid*Other results of this study:• Confirmed an increased risk of GDV/bloat with increasing age
• Increased risk of GDV in a dog with a first degree relative with GDV
• Increased risk of GDV in dogs eating from raised food bowls
• 2.7 fold increased risk of GDV in dogs that consumed dry foods containing fat among the first four ingredients
• 4.2 fold increase in GDV in dogs that consumed dry foods containing citric acid that were also pre-moistened prior to feeding
• Decreased incidence of GDV (53%) in dogs fed dry foods containing a rendered meat meal with bone among the first four ingredientsHope this information helps.
Dr. Donna Spector